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DUTCH WATER AUTHORITIES Leading in regional watermanagement
DUTCH WATER AUTHORITIES
Good water management involves much more than building dykes and windmills. It also calls for good water governance, adapting to climate change, accurate waterlevel control, dredging city canals and treating wastewater. Thanks to the efforts of the regional water authorities, the people of the Netherlands live in the safest and cleanest delta in the world.
Dutch Water Authorities wants to share its expertise in regional water management with the world. It can provide answers to a wide range of questions and requests from fellow authorities, the European Union, NGOs, companies and other organisations, offering greater opportunities for good governance, innovation and trade. Dutch Water Authorities is your point of contact for expertise in regional water management.
CASE VIETNAM – URBAN FLOOD CONTROL IN HO CHI MINH CITY
Dutch Water Authorities is exchanging knowledge and experience with experts at the Steering Centre for Urban Flood Control (SCFC) in Ho Chi Minh city in Vietnam. The University of Twente is analysing the governance context within which the centre is operating. The Dutch experts are being supported by the Vietnamese branch of the Royal Haskoning DHV company. Professionals of Dutch Water Authorities will hold training courses in the field of strategic planning, risk management, wastewater treatment, project management and financial management.
CASE SOUTH AFRICA – KINGFISHER PROGRAMME
South Africa’s water governance structure is currently being reorganised. This reorganisation involves decentralising tasks from the Department of Water Affairs (DWA) to Catchment Management Agencies (CMAs). Nine CMAs need to be established by the end of 2015. The Kingfisher programme, which came about through a unique partnership between the Netherlands Association of Local Governments and Dutch Water Authorities, is bringing together South African and Dutch water authorities and municipalities. The funding agencies are the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Dutch Waterschapsbank (NWB). Using a colleague- to-colleague approach, this programme is working to improve local water management.
ABOUT US
Dutch Water Authorities is an international organisation comprising the 23 regional water authorities in the Netherlands and their umbrella association, the Unie van Waterschappen. It promotes the interests of the regional water authorities at national and international level and shares a European office in Brussels with Vewin, the Dutch association of drinking water companies. By joining forces, Dutch Water Authorities aims to provide a better service to the people and organisations that need it most, to bolster international business, and to create the maximum mutual benefit through international cooperation. By performing these tasks Dutch Water Authorities also gain knowledge and experience which it will reinvest in the sector.
REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITIES
Local and regional water management in the Netherlands is largely the responsibility of regional water authorities, which are decentralised and financially self-sufficient public authorities. Regional water authorities are responsible for flood control, water quality and quantity and the treatment of urban wastewater. Regional water authorities are legally embedded in the overall democratic structure of the Netherlands.
CASE NEREDA – BIOLOGICAL WASTE WATER PURIFICATION
Nereda is a biological sewage technology. Sewage is purified by bacteria that are cultivated in large tanks. The Nereda technology uses grains in which the bacteria that purify the water are grown. An extensive amount of organic dirt and nutrients (nitrogen, phosphate) is removed by these grains, mostly without the use of chemicals. One advantage is that purification now takes place in a smaller tank in a single step. This saves a great deal of space and energy, because less water needs to be circulated and fewer chemicals are required.The technique is also being used to capture alginate from the sludge. Alginate is used in the manufacture of medical materials (dental impressions) and food products. Dutch Water Authorities is working together with the Technical University of Delft, STOWA and the Royal Haskoning DHV company to develop the technology. The Nereda technology is currently used in the Netherlands and is now also being exported to South Africa, Brazil and Portugal, amongst others.
CASE ETHIOPIA – WORKING TOGETHER ON GOOD GOVERNANCE
Ethiopia suffers not only from drought, but also flooding, bad water quality, soil erosion and problems with bad sanitation. However, a centralised and efficient approach to these problems is lacking. Dutch Water Authorities has signed an agreement with the Awash Basin Authority – which is responsible for integral water management in the Awash River Basin − and the Ministry of Water and Energy that is aimed at strengthening governance and promoting the use of best practices by other catchment area organisations in Ethiopia.
OUR EXPERTISE
Dutch Water Authorities is an expert in the field of water gover-nance. Not only is it active in finding smart, innovative solutions to water problems, it also has expertise and experience in generating support for those solutions, in involving stakeholders and in organising the management of those solutions. As a non-profit government organisation, it provides added value particularly in the field of water governance. It is in this area that Dutch Water Authorities has its specific expertise. In their report ‘Water Gover-nance in the Netherlands- Fit for the Future?’ (2014) the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) qualified Dutch water management as a ‘global reference’ and praised the effectiveness of Dutch water management and the role of the regional water authorities.
HOW CAN WE HELP YOU?
Dutch Water Authorities can:• offer expertise in regional water management and water gover-
nance through joint projects, expert capacity, field visits and presentations
• attend specific requests for international cooperation in one of our nine focal countries: Bangladesh, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Romania, South Africa and Vietnam
• respond to requests for international cooperation from Dutch businesses
• provide assistance before, during and after water-related disasters
Dutch Water Authorities can be of assistance in the following policy areas:
1. Regional water governance• Information management • Policy development and planning • Regulations and permits • Organisation and public administration • Finance and taxation • Stakeholder participation • Cooperative governance • Transparency
2. Waste water management and recycling• Chain approach • Public-private collaboration • Efficient operations • Energy and nutrient recovery • Economies of scale • Innovative solutions
3. Integrated water resources management• Basin planning • Water quality monitoring • Sustainability and climate adaptation • Innovative solutions • Compliance and enforcement • Risk management and disaster-preparedness
PARTNERS
In the context of boosting export and disaster risk reduction, Dutch Water Authorities is working with Dutch companies and knowledge institutes all over the world. With regard to inter-national cooperation, Dutch Water Authorities is focusing on nine countries: Bangladesh, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Romania, South Africa and Vietnam. Dutch Water Authorities is also cooperating internationally with the Dutch National Govern ment and knowledge institutes, NGOs and companies.
CASE INDONESIA – BANGER POLDER PILOT
The low-lying urban deltas in Indonesia are flooded almost daily as a result of extreme subsidence. The Banger Polder pilot project in Semarang is investigating whether the Dutch polder model can help to solve this problem. The project is providing an insight into how the natural adaptation of the population can limit the effect of flooding. Dutch Water Authorities is working on this project, which has technical facets (from design to realisation) and governance aspects, and a Water Management Board has now been set up. The polder layout was designed by Dutch company Witteveen en Bosch.
“DUTCH WATER
AUTHORITIES WANTS
TO SHARE ITS EXPERTISE
IN REGIONAL WATER
MANAGEMENT WITH
THE WORLD
VISITING ADDRESSKoningskade 402596 AA The Hague+31 70 351 97 51The Netherlands
POSTAL ADDRESSPO Box 932182509 AE The HagueThe Netherlands
November, 2014